# Accident 20150823014239A: Schleicher ASW-20, Hempstead, TX, August 23, 2015

- Type: FAA accident report (Accident/Incident Data System), as reported
- Date: August 23, 2015, 13:37 local time
- Place: Hempstead, TX
- Damage: Destroyed
- Phase of flight: Descent
- Operating rules: General operating rules (Part 91)
- Location: 30.1119° N, 96.0381° W: From the FAA
- Nearby events: https://openairdocs.org/map.md?lat=30.1119&lon=-96.0381&mi=10
- Aircraft: N878S, a cancelled registration (https://openairdocs.org/deregistered/N878S-2018-05-24) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry model: Schleicher ASW-20 (registry code 3801506, https://openairdocs.org/model/schleicher-asw-20) (OpenAirDocs)
- Registry engine: NONE (registry code 00000, https://openairdocs.org/engine/none) (OpenAirDocs)
- Reported make and model: SCHLEICHER ASW-20
- Reported engine: NONE NONE
- People aboard: 1
- Fatal injuries: 1
- Other injuries: 0
- Pilot certificates: Commercial pilot
- Pilot flight hours: 505 total
- NTSB investigation: [NTSB CEN15LA376](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN15LA376) (OpenAirDocs)
- FAA source: FAA Aviation Safety Information Portal (https://asip.faa.gov/)
- Page: https://openairdocs.org/incident/20150823014239A

## Narrative

As the FAA filed it, in capitals; the FAA replaces private details with ^PRIVACY DATA OMITTED^.

ON AUGUST 23, 2015, A PHONE CALL WAS RECEIVED BY THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY (TX DPS) INDICATING THAT AN ACCIDENT OCCURRED AT LANEVIEW ROAD IN HEMPSTEAD, TEXAS. AT THE SCENE THE REPORTING INSPECTOR WAS TOLD BY A TX DPS TROOPER ON SCENE THAT WHEN HE ARRIVED AT THE SCENE TWO POWER LINES WERE ON THE GROUND NEXT TO THE AIRCRAFT. THE POWER COMPANY WAS CALLED AND SPLICED THE TWO LINES BEFORE THE REPORTING INSPECTOR ARRIVED TO THE SCENE. AN EXAMINATION OF THE SCENE REVEALED THAT THE AIRCRAFT COCKPIT WAS DESTROYED AND THE WINGS SUBSTANTIALLY DAMAGED. NO IMPACT MARKS WERE DETECTED ON THE AREA AROUND THE AIRCRAFT EXCEPT A DAMAGED FENCE WIRES AND ROD BELOW THE LEFT WING. SCRATCH MARKS WERE FOUND ON THE POST THAT WAS HOLDING THE RIPPED WIRES. THE LEFT WING LEADING EDGE LOWER SURFACE HAD SOME SCRATCH MARKS. NO ANOMALIES FOUND WITH THE AIRCRAFT CONTROLS SURFACES. AN EMAIL FROM THE POWER COMPANY TO THE NTSB INVESTIGATOR IN CHARGE INDICATED THAT THE POWER COMPANY METER SYSTEM REPORTED A POWER OUTAGE AT 1:37 P.M. AFFECTING A BUILDING AT 40466 FM 1488 HEMPSTEAD TX. THIS BUILDING IS NEAR THE ACCIDENT SITE. ACCORDING TO AN EMAIL FROM THE TOWING AIRCRAFT?S PILOT TO THE NTSB INVESTIGATOR IN CHARGE, AIRCRAFT N878S WAS TOWED FROM THE SOARING CLUB OF HOUSTON, IN WALLER, TEXAS AND WAS RELEASED AS EXPECTED AT 2,000 FT. ABOVE GROUND LEVEL.

## The NTSB's investigation of this event (1)

From the NTSB's public API. Aircraft are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported serial number, make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model.

- [NTSB CEN15LA376](https://openairdocs.org/ntsb/CEN15LA376), Aug 23, 2015: Schleicher ASW 20 (N878S), Hempstead, TX, substantial damage, 1 fatal. Probable cause: The pilot’s failure to maintain clearance from power lines during an attempted off-airport landing.

From the FAA Accident/Incident Data System. Reports are matched to registry aircraft by N-number and event date, checked against the reported make and model; the registry's history has gaps, so older matches can be wrong. Compare the reported make and model. For accidents, the NTSB's own investigation is the fuller record.

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